


Knightfall

by Golden_Asp



Category: Batman (Comics), batman arkham universe
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2015-08-24
Packaged: 2018-04-12 15:08:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4484078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Golden_Asp/pseuds/Golden_Asp
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>We know how it happened.  Now, see how those closest to him felt after it happened.  MAJOR SPOILERS for the end of Arkham Knight.  This is a series of one shots from those who knew him, and thought they knew him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Barbara Gordon

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Batman. Any recognizable characters are property of their owners. No infringement intended. You all know the drill. Recognizable dialogue comes straight from the Arkham Knight game.  
> Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Barbara Gordon

When he said he was going to finish it, I never imagined that this is what he meant. I was at GCPD when it happened. My dad and Tim had just been brought back from Arkham Asylum. Robin walked up to me and we hugged tightly. To say it had been a long night was an understatement.

“Where’s my dad?” I asked.

“On the roof,” Tim said wearily, “He said he needed to look at something. The bat-signal, I think.” He looked around and sank to the floor. He looked terrible. I don’t think I looked much better though. I doubt my dad looked any better.

We sat in silence for a while, the hum of GCPD around us. Gotham’s most wanted were arguing in the holding cell. Scarecrow was rocking back and forth, muttering about bats. The bastard could rot in hell for all I cared. The son of a bitch.

“Hey, look!” one of the officers pointed to the TV. We looked up. Cash brought Vicki Vale’s feed on the big screen by the intake desk. Tim pushed me over on the office chair. Vicki Vale was standing in front of Wayne Manor with what seemed to be reporters from every news agency in the world.

It was big news, the fact that Bruce Wayne was the Batman.

“This is Vicki Vale for GCN, reporting live outside Wayne Manor following the dramatic unmasking of billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne…”

The camera suddenly panned up as the Batwing flew in. The reporters surged towards the gate. Vale looked at her cameraman.

“That’s him! Are you still rolling?”

The camera zoomed in on Bruce. I felt a stirring of unease. Where was his cowl? I grabbed Tim’s hand, and he squeezed it gently. I don’t know if he felt what I did. Where was his cowl?

The camera zoomed in as the door to the manor opened. I could see Alfred standing there, looking impeccable as always. He and Bruce exchanged a few words. I was clinging to Tim’s hand as I watched Alfred shake his head slowly. Bruce put his hand on Alfred’s shoulder and walked into the manor. 

The camera focused on Alfred’s face as he began to shut the door. He looked…a little sad, resigned. It seemed to take forever for the door to shut.

Vale was still reporting. “We just saw Bruce Wayne, now known to be the masked vigilante Batman, enter his home refusing to comm-“

“No…” I whispered softly. Tim looked down at me.

“Barbara, what-“

The door finally snapped shut. The manor exploded.

“No!” Tim yelled. I covered my mouth, stifling my cries. The GCPD went silent. The police, who just hours ago had learned that the masked man that had helped them for years was in fact Bruce Wayne, seemed more shocked by the explosion than the truth of the Batman’s identity. Even Gotham’s most wanted went quiet, watching the manor being devoured by the explosions.

It seemed like hours, days, years even, that we sat there and watched the live feed of Bruce Wayne’s death. Time stood still. It was over. I could feel tears flowing down my face, and when I looked at Tim, I could see tears running from under his mask.

“C’mon people, we still have work to do,” my dad’s gruff voice came from behind us. I turned and felt my chest constrict. He was holding Batman’s cowl in his hand. He looked resigned, and so very tired. 

“Daddy…” I whispered. He wrapped his arms around me and we held each other tightly, Batman’s cowl trapped between us. He looked at Tim.

“You doing okay, Robin?”

Tim nodded jerkily. My dad looked at us. “Why don’t I take you and Robin to back to the clock tower?”

We nodded slowly. Anything to be away from the crowds right now. My dad went to get a car ready. Cash carried me to the garage since neither Tim nor my dad was really up to it right now. 

The ride to the clock tower was silent. I sat next in the passenger seat and watched Gotham. It was a mess. Debris from the tanks, bodies from when the Cloudburst went off, and to top it off, Bruce was gone. The Batman was gone. It didn’t seem right. What was Gotham without the Dark Knight?

When we got to the tower, Tim went up and got my wheelchair and brought it back down. Then all three of us rode up together. As soon as we were in the confines of my place, Tim took off his mask.

Dad seemed completely nonplussed that Tim Drake was Robin. Although I guess after finding out that I had been Batgirl and continued to work with Batman even after the Joker shot me….maybe he was just at his limit for shocks for the night.

Tim walked over to the small fridge and took out three sodas. He handed them to each of us. I wheeled myself over to the Shakespeare bust and flipped the head back. It scanned my eyes and the clock tower changed over.

“Identity confirmed, welcome Oracle.”

Like I had told Bruce, I was surprised when my dad hadn’t said anything about me being Batgirl or Oracle and keeping it from him for years. He still didn’t say anything about it. He just stared at the computers. Tim stood next to the console in the middle of the room, looking at the icons.

“Babs, what’s ‘Knightfall’?” he asked.

“What?” I wheeled over to him. In the middle of the screen was an icon that hadn’t been there before. It was simply titled ‘Knightfall’. I frowned and touched it. It opened, revealing a folder. Suddenly, Bruce’s voice came from the computer.

_“Barbara, Lucius has a physical copy, but I figured you deserved to see it before the lawyers see it. You were the best of us, always.”_

I opened the folder and opened the only thing that was in it.

The last will and testament of Bruce Wayne.

That was when the tears really started.

**Knightfall**

The next few weeks were a blur. LexCorp and S.T.A.R. Labs came in and began to help Wayne Enterprises with cleaning up Gotham. My dad won the election for mayor in a landslide. Mayor James Gordon. Has a nice ring to it. Speaking of rings, Tim proposed. I said yes. We’re getting married soon. I just wish Bruce could be there.

A week after the election, a group of us were called to Lucius’ office at Wayne Enterprises for the reading of the will. Me, Tim, Dad, and Dick met in front of Wayne Tower. Dick looked ragged. I knew it had been rough on him. He had been working extra hard in Bludhaven, like he had something to prove. 

A woman walked out of Wayne Tower just as we were opening the door. My dad held the door open for her. Her head was down, but I thought she looked familiar. Short black hair, pale skin, green eyes…

Selina. What the hell was Catwoman doing at Wayne Enterprises? 

I’ll be honest, I never read his will. I tried, but every time it just brought on more tears. It wouldn’t surprise me if Bruce had left something to Selina, but I just hadn’t read it. I couldn’t read it.

She never looked at us as she walked away. Soon, the four of us were in Lucius’ office. We all gathered around the desk.

“I’ll make this quick,” the lawyer said, “Bruce Wayne left something for all of you.” He looked at the will before him.

“’To Richard John Grayson, I leave the Wayne summer manor, my shares of Wayne Enterprises, as well as the 500 million in investments I have made in his name. Let it be known that he now has full access to the trust fund I created for him at the age of 9. Tell him I am proud of him.’”

Dick looked shocked. “So much…why?”

The lawyer looked at him. “You were his heir, Mr. Grayson. With no living relatives, Mr. Wayne made you the heir to most of the Wayne fortune.”

Dick nodded and looked at his hands clasped in his lap. I could see the tears rolling down his cheeks.

The lawyer continued. “’To Barbara Gordon, I leave the clock tower, 25 million dollars in savings, and my eternal gratitude.’”

I swallowed as the lawyer handed me the deed to the clock tower. I was now the owner of one of the most sought after buildings in Gotham, and more money than I knew what to do with.

I ran my fingers over the deed and closed my eyes.

“’To Timothy Drake I leave Panessa Studios, 25 million in savings, and apologies for any bad memories that the studios may now carry.’”

Tim took the deed from the lawyer with wide eyes. We looked at each other. That last phrase meant that Bruce had modified his will that night. Of course he had. It was probably part of the Knightfall Protocol. 

“’To Lucius Fox I leave Wayne Enterprises in his capable hands, with the caveat that it never be renamed, and I leave my thanks.’”

Lucius nodded. He was now the sole owner of Wayne Enterprises. It didn’t surprise me at all. Lucius was a good man, the only man for the job. 

“’To James Gordon I leave 50 million dollars in savings, and my thanks for being a true friend.’”

My dad looked at his hands as we all sat in silence. The lawyer looked slightly uncomfortable.

“There’s one more person Mr. Wayne left some of his estate to, but we can’t seem to get a hold of him.”

“Who is it?” I asked. If anyone could find this person, I could.

“A Jason Todd.”

“What?!” Dick shouted. My dad put his hand on Dick’s shoulder. I hadn’t seen Dick since that night, only talking over the phone. I hadn’t told him that Jason was alive, that Jason had worked with Crane that night and had tried to kill Batman multiple times. I hadn’t told him that Jason had stepped in and saved Bruce.

Dick opened his mouth, but closed it when my dad squeezed his shoulder.

“I’ll get in touch with him,” I said softly, “but he probably won’t come to see you. I can get whatever Bruce left to him to him.”

The lawyer nodded. He told me what I needed to know to get Jason what Bruce had left. Dick looked uncomfortable. Maybe I should’ve told him that Jason was alive…

We left Wayne Tower. Dick returned to Bludhaven, Tim and I planned our wedding, and life went on.

**Knightfall**

As mayor, one of the first things my dad was rename Crime Alley. It’s now Wayne Way. The second thing he did was make sure that Ivy’s giant plants weren’t touched. He wanted to honor her, because we all knew that without her, we all would have died. The third thing he did was commission a statue of the Batman. Tim and I were married before the statue was finished. It was a short, simple ceremony, and with the money Bruce left us, we got one hell of a honeymoon.

The statue was finally unveiled in January. It seemed like most of Gotham turned out for it. There were reporters from all over the world there to see the unveiling of this statue.  
My dad stood next to the covered statue, looking out over the crowd.

“A friend once told me that criminals are a cowardly and superstitious lot. That the only way to beat them was to give them something to be scared of.”

I tuned out the speech after that. I had heard it many times, hell, I’d thought it many times. I was still Oracle. I was still protecting his city. There have been rumors of a new Batman. None of us have seen him. I just know it’s not Bruce, it’s not our Batman. And until Robin or Nightwing, or hell, even Catwoman, meet this new Batman, we’ll just let the myth grow. The criminals need something to fear.

Robin pulled the shroud off the statue. I looked at it. He stood over a miniaturized city scape of Gotham, looking over his city. He would always be there to protect it. At the base of the statue was the bat symbol with words inlaid over it.

**“From a grateful city, in memory of the Gotham Knight.”**


	2. Dick Grayson

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> standard disclaimers apply, please leave a comment and let me know what you think!

I should’ve shaken his hand.

I feel like I should’ve known that night, when he said it was the last time we would meet. I should’ve known what he was going to do. I had spent years with the man, and thought I knew him better than most. I should’ve known.

I was like a stubborn child that night. I told him that nothing would stop him, nothing could stop him, and then I ran.

How long had he known it would end like this? Knowing him, he had it planned for years. He always was at least four steps ahead of the rest of us.

I didn’t expect him to leave me anything in his will. Let alone name me heir to the Wayne family fortune. I figured it would be Tim, not me. I felt so lost after the will was read to us. And then to find out that Jason was alive was…almost too much.

Barbara and Tim told me more about that night after the will was read. How the Joker’s blood had infected him, and was taking over his mind. How the Arkham Knight, Jason Todd, spent the night trying to kill him, then ultimately saving him, only to have him die anyway. 

I haven’t talked to Jason. I don’t know if I can. I’m angry. Angry at Bruce, for leaving, at Alfred, for going with him, at Barbara for keeping it from me. 

But mostly I’m angry at myself. He’s gone, and I’ll never get to tell him everything. How much I appreciate everything he did for me. He made me the man I am today. Without him…well, I wouldn’t be me.

He may be gone, but I can do what he asked me to do. I can keep Bludhaven safe.

But I’ll always regret that one thing.

I should’ve shaken his hand.


	3. Vicki Vale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> standard disclaimers apply. Please leave a comment and let me know what you thought! Brief mention of events from the Arkham Knight prequel novel Riddler's Revenge.

“2 minutes to live, Vicki,” my producer says in my ear. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. It’s Halloween. It’s been a year since Gotham was nearly brought down by the Scarecrow. It’s been a year since the identity of the Batman came to light, and we all learned just what Bruce Wayne really did during the night.

I thought I knew Bruce Wayne fairly well. After all, I am one of the few women he dated more than once. I spent a fair amount of time with him, at the manor and around Gotham, and I never once suspected…

Halloween night, a year ago. Another night in Gotham for the crazies to try to take over the city. We thought that the Joker’s death would calm things down, and for a while, it did. Seriously, reporting during those nine months was almost…boring. Don’t tell my news director I said that.

But it was. Most of the crooks were quiet. There was that whole debacle with the Riddler a while before Halloween. The son of a bitch killed Phil, my cameraman of many years. Robin saved me. I try to forget how Harley Quinn (the crazy bitch) almost killed me while playing dress up as the Red Queen.

But besides that rather memorable moment, Gotham was quiet. Until the incident at Pauli’s Diner, and the broadcast from the Scarecrow. Gotham’s only warning. Creepy bastard.

Part of me wanted to stay in the city. I mean, that’s where the story was. GCN’s news director flatly refused to let me stay. He mentioned something about Arkham City, and a helicopter crashing, and being rescued by Batman (who flatly refused an interview). He had to bring that up, didn’t he? 

He told me that if I stayed in the city, I would no longer be a reporter for Gotham City News. So I went to mainland with everyone else and watched the city fall into chaos. 

“90 seconds to live.”

As always, there was one bright light in the darkness. Batman. We watched as he and that Arkham Knight character went head to head all night. We watched as Poison Ivy gave her life to save a city she hated from Scarecrow’s fear toxin.

And then we watched as Batman was ‘captured’ by the Scarecrow and taken to Arkham Asylum. Scarecrow had sent out a live feed, promising the unmasking of the Batman.

As a reporter, it’s the kind of story we wait a life time for. We had wondered and speculated for years about the true identity of the Batman, the Dark Knight. Batman was a vigilante, but he was our vigilante. Was Gotham a better city because of him? Well, the crazies certainly moved in after he came on the scene, but he did give Gordon the edge he needed in cleaning up the city.

I can still remember the press of bodies as we watched, waiting for the Batman’s cowl to be removed. I was talking a mile a minute into the mic, watching the feed. When Gordon took that mask off of him and it revealed Bruce Wayne…

I was so angry at first. I couldn’t believe he had lied so well. Had any of his feelings been real, or had everything been a façade? Anger gave way to shock as we watched him fight the toxin injected directly into his body. There was a brief moment where he smiled at Scarecrow, and I swear he looked like the Joker in that moment. It was terrifying.

I kept my feelings out of my reporting. Most of the people I worked with knew I had dated the man. There would be questions for months after this.

I’m good at answering questions. But I don’t know if I want to answer those questions…

I had specialized on Batman for the past 2 years, ever since that Arkham Asylum debacle. Of course, getting an interview with the Batman was out of the question, the looks he gave me whenever I asked…Let’s just say, even though he doesn’t kill, that look could’ve stopped anyone in their tracks. 

Oh well, a reporter’s gotta try, right?

“One minute.”

Okay, one minute before we go live. After Bruce was revealed to be Batman, we packed up and hoofed it over to Wayne Manor. There were so many of us, packed together, jostling for space in front of the gates.

It was a couple hours after the big reveal when the Batwing swooped in and dropped him off on the front lawn of the manor. We surged towards the gate. I was still talking into the mic.

“We just saw Bruce Wayne, now known to be the masked vigilante Batman, enter his home, refusing to comm-“ 

Then the explosion.

“30 seconds.”

I was shocked, silent. I honestly couldn’t think of anything to say. The beautiful manor was utterly annihilated by the explosions. I could feel the heat from the fires, and I could hear the studio anchors in my ear, asking what was going on exactly. 

Answering questions is what I do.

“It’s gone, Wayne Manor has just been destroyed by an explosion. Bruce Wayne…the Batman is dead.”

I just stared at the fire, trying to wrap my mind around the fact that he was gone.

“15 seconds.”

That was a year ago tonight. So for the past year, I’ve been gathering information on Bruce and the Batman, and I’ve put together quite the story on him. It includes an exclusive interview with Mayor James Gordon, given just after the unveiling of the memorial statue. 

I was front and center for that, and for the shock of the Justice League showing up in the middle of it. They didn’t want to answer any questions either. You’d think that Wonder Woman had ice vision the look she gave me was so cold. 

We got the picture that was seen around the world, the picture of Superman mourning the Batman.

I found out all I could about Batman’s activities with the Justice League, and young Bruce Wayne. I even interviewed some of the so called Rogue Gallery. Cobblepot is a lecherous little freak, but I was very polite during the entire interview, I didn’t even slap him when he put his hand on my thigh.

Then there are the rumors of a new, nasty, nightmarish Batman. I haven’t seen him. As far as I know, no one credible has seen him, but you can be sure if I ever do come across this new Batman, I’m asking for an interview. 

“10 seconds.”

I’m standing in front of the statue of Batman right now, staring into the lights of GCN’s live truck, listening to the countdown in my ear. I’m leading off the show tonight, no anchors, nothing else, just me and my story on Batman. 

It’s already been picked up by every major news affiliate in America, and by a fair number overseas as well.

Looking back on the time I spent with Bruce, I’ve come to the conclusion that Bruce Wayne was the mask. Batman was the real man. Bruce was the face he put on to interact with us on a more human level, but Batman was the real him.

I take a deep breath and listen to my producer finish the countdown.

“Standby in 5…4…3…2…1…”

I plaster a smile on my face.

“This is Vicki Vale for GCN, live from Bruce Wayne Memorial Plaza…”

**Author's Note:**

> Up next: Dick Grayson  
> Let me know what you think!


End file.
